Impact of Conservation Agriculture on Soil Erosion in the Annual Cropland of the Apulia Region (Southern Italy) Based on the RUSLE-GIS-GEE Framework

The processes of soil erosion and land degradation are more rapid in the case of inappropriate agricultural management, which leads to increased soil loss rates. Moreover, climatic conditions are one of the most important determining factors affecting agriculture, especially in the Mediterranean areas featuring irregular rainfall and high summer temperatures. Conservation agriculture (CA) can make a significant contribution to reducing soil erosion risk on the annual cropland (ACL) of the Mediterranean region in comparison with conventional management (CM). The objective of this study is to provide soil loss rate maps and calculate the values for each altitude and slope class and their combination for the Apulia region in four annual production cycles for the scenarios CM and CA. The present study estimates the significance of the adoption of CA on soil erosion assessment at regional scale based on the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) model. The parameters of the RUSLE model were estimated by using remote sensing (RS) data. The erosion probability zones were determined through a Geographic Information System (GIS) and Google Earth Engine (GEE) approach. Digital terrain model (DTM) at 8 m, ACL maps of the Apulia region, and rainfall and soil data were used as an input to identify the most erosion-prone areas. Our results show a 7.5% average decrease of soil loss rate during the first period of adoption of the four-year crop cycle—from 2.3 t ha−1 y−1 with CM to 2.1 t ha−1 y−1 with the CA system. CA reduced soil loss rate compared to CM in all classes, from 10.1% in hill class to 14.1% for hill + low slope class. These results can therefore assist in the implementation of effective soil management systems and conservation practices to reduce soil erosion risk in the Apulia region and in the Mediterranean basin more generally

Quantitative analysis of electronic transport through weakly-coupled metal/organic interfaces

Using single-crystal transistors, we have performed a systematic experimental study of electronic transport through oxidized copper/rubrene interfaces as a function of temperature and bias. We find that the measurements can be reproduced quantitatively in terms of the thermionic emission theory for Schottky diodes, if the effect of the bias-induced barrier lowering is included. Our analysis emphasizes the role of the coupling between metal and molecules, which in our devices is weak due to the presence of an oxide layer at the surface of the copper electrodes.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Semi-classical study of the Quantum Hall conductivity

The semi-classical study of the integer Quantum Hall conductivity is investigated for electrons in a bi-periodic potential $V(x,y)$. The Hall conductivity is due to the tunnelling effect and we concentrate our study to potentials having three wells in a periodic cell. A non-zero topological conductivity requires special conditions for the positions, and shapes of the wells. The results are derived analytically and well confirmed by numerical calculations.Comment: 23 pages, 13 figure

Multidetection scheme for transient-grating-based spectroscopy

Time-resolved optical spectroscopy represents an effec-tive non-invasive approach to investigate the interplay of different degrees of freedom, which plays a key role in the development of novel functional materials. Here, we present magneto-acoustic data on Ni thin films on SiO2 as obtained by a versatile pump-probe setup that combines transient grating spectroscopy with time-resolved magnetic polarimetry. The possibility to easily switch from a pulsed to continuous wave probe allows probing of acoustic and magnetization dynamics on a broad time scale, in both trans-mission and reflection geometry

Evaluation of the irradiation treatment effects on ancient parchment samples

In this work, the effect of X-ray irradiation as a disinfection treatment in original ancient parchment samples, belonging to a discarded book cover of a 16th-century archival register, has been evaluated. Specifically, the bacterial and fungal species isolated from the book cover have been characterized and then irradiated with increasing doses of X-rays with the aim to evaluate the effectiveness of the antimicrobial protocol on the isolated microorganisms. The deterioration effects induced by the X-ray treatment as well as the natural aging on the collagen matrix of the parchment sample have been tested by employing several techniques, namely, Light Transmission Analysis, Fiber Optic Reflectance Spectroscopy, Attenuated Total Reflectance-Fourier Transformed Infrared spectroscopy, UV Resonant Raman spectroscopy and Atomic Force Microscopy. The results reveal that the irradiation treatment applied to our ancient parchment samples deteriorated by biological attack and other naturally occurring phenomena, possibly associated with inappropriate conservation conditions, does not seem to induce further damage factors even when large doses of irradiation are employed. The X-rays-based disinfection treatment effects are limited on the collagen support and this confirms the potential of this method in mass disinfection of library and archival materials

Stable directions for small nonlinear Dirac standing waves

We prove that for a Dirac operator with no resonance at thresholds nor eigenvalue at thresholds the propagator satisfies propagation and dispersive estimates. When this linear operator has only two simple eigenvalues close enough, we study an associated class of nonlinear Dirac equations which have stationary solutions. As an application of our decay estimates, we show that these solutions have stable directions which are tangent to the subspaces associated with the continuous spectrum of the Dirac operator. This result is the analogue, in the Dirac case, of a theorem by Tsai and Yau about the Schr\"{o}dinger equation. To our knowledge, the present work is the first mathematical study of the stability problem for a nonlinear Dirac equation.Comment: 62 page

Severity of Hepatocyte Damage and Prognosis in Cirrhotic Patients Correlate with Hepatocyte Magnesium Depletion

We aimed to evaluate the magnesium content in human cirrhotic liver and its correlation with serum AST levels, expression of hepatocellular injury, and MELDNa prognostic score. In liver biopsies obtained at liver transplantation, we measured the magnesium content in liver tissue in 27 cirrhotic patients (CIRs) and 16 deceased donors with healthy liver (CTRLs) by atomic absorption spectrometry and within hepatocytes of 15 CIRs using synchrotron-based X-ray fluorescence microscopy. In 31 CIRs and 10 CTRLs, we evaluated the immunohistochemical expression in hepatocytes of the transient receptor potential melastatin 7 (TRPM7), a magnesium influx chanzyme also involved in inflammation. CIRs showed a lower hepatic magnesium content (117.2 (IQR 110.5-132.9) vs. 162.8 (IQR 155.9-169.8) mu g/g; p < 0.001) and a higher percentage of TRPM7 positive hepatocytes (53.0 (IQR 36.8-62.0) vs. 20.7 (10.7-32.8)%; p < 0.001) than CTRLs. In CIRs, MELDNa and serum AST at transplant correlated: (a) inversely with the magnesium content both in liver tissue and hepatocytes; and (b) directly with the percentage of hepatocytes stained intensely for TRPM7. The latter also directly correlated with the worsening of MELDNa at transplant compared to waitlisting. Magnesium depletion and overexpression of its influx chanzyme TRPM7 in hepatocytes are associated with severity of hepatocyte injury and prognosis in cirrhosis. These data represent the pathophysiological basis for a possible beneficial effect of magnesium supplementation in cirrhotic patients

Glioma-associated stem cells: A novel class of tumor-supporting cells able to predict prognosis of human low-grade gliomas.

Background: Translational medicine aims at transferring advances in basic science research into new approaches for diagnosis and treatment of diseases. Low-grade gliomas (LGG) have a heterogeneous clinical behavior that can be only partially predicted employing current state-of-the-art markers, hindering the decision-making process. To deepen our comprehension on tumor heterogeneity, we dissected the mechanism of interaction between tumor cells and relevant components of the neoplastic environment, isolating, from LGG and high-grade gliomas (HGG), proliferating stem cell lines from both the glioma stroma and, where possible, the neoplasm. Methods and Findings: We isolated glioma-associated stem cells (GASC) from LGG (n=40) and HGG (n=73). GASC showed stem cell features, anchorage-independent growth, and supported the malignant properties of both A172 cells and human glioma-stem cells, mainly through the release of exosomes. Finally, starting from GASC obtained from HGG (n=13) and LGG (n=12) we defined a score, based on the expression of 9 GASC surface markers, whose prognostic value was assayed on 40 subsequent LGG-patients. At the multivariate Cox analysis, the GASC-based score was the only independent predictor of overall survival and malignant progression free-survival. Conclusions: The microenvironment of both LGG and HGG hosts non-tumorigenic multipotent stem cells that can increase in vitro the biological aggressiveness of glioma-initiating cells through the release of exosomes. The clinical importance of this finding is supported by the strong prognostic value associated with the characteristics of GASC. This patient-based approach can provide a groundbreaking method to predict prognosis and to exploit novel strategies that target the tumor stroma

INVESTIGATING THE SEISMIC RESPONSE OF URM WALLS WITH IRREGULAR OPENING LAYOUT THROUGH DIFFERENT MODELING APPROACHES

The façade and internal walls of unreinforced masonry (URM) buildings often present an irregular opening layout, due to architectural reasons or modifications to the structure, which make the expected seismic damage pattern less predictable a priori. Therefore, the discretization of the walls in structural components is not standardized, conversely to cases with a regular opening layout for which the available modeling methods are corroborated by seismic damage surveys reporting recurrent failure patterns. The structural component discretization is a relevant step for the code-conforming seismic assessment, typically based on comparing the internal forces and drifts of each component to strength criteria and drift thresholds. Therefore, the lack of well-established approaches can significantly influence the assessment. The issue is even more evident when the structural components must be identified a priori in the modeling stage, namely for equivalent frame models. The applicability of available methods for discretization of URM walls with irregular opening layout has been already investigated in literature, but a conclusive judgment requires further studies. In this context, this paper presents an overview of the preliminary results addressing the numerical modeling of this type of walls within the framework of the DPC-ReLUIS 2022-2024 project (Subtask 10.3), funded by the Italian Department of Civil Protection. The Subtask aims to propose consensus-based recommendations for researchers and practitioners which can contribute to harmonize the use of different modeling approaches. Seven research groups are involved in the research, adopting different modeling approaches and computer codes, but similar assumptions and the same analysis method (pushover) are used. The benchmark URM structure illustrated in the paper is a two-story wall from which four configurations with increasing irregularity of opening layout were derived. The results of four modeling approached are presented. Three of them reproduce the mechanical response of masonry at the material scale by means of FE models implemented in OpenSees, DIANA and Abaqus software, while the remaining approach describes the mechanical response of masonry at the macro-element scale in 3DMacro software. Results were compared in terms of capacity curves, predicted failure mechanisms and evolution of internal forces in piers. The adoption of consistent assumptions among the different approaches led to an overall agreement of predictions at both wall and pier scales, particularly in terms of damage pattern with higher concentration of damage at the ground story. Despite that, differences on the pushover curves have been highlighted. They are mainly due to some deviations of the internal forces in squat piers deriving from a complex load flow in these elements

Investigating the seismic response of URM walls with irregular opening layout through different modeling approaches

TThe façade and internal walls of unreinforced masonry (URM) buildings often present an irregular opening layout, due to architectural reasons or modifications to the structure, which make the expected seismic damage pattern less predictable a priori. Therefore, the discretization of the walls in structural components is not standardized, conversely to cases with a regular opening layout for which the available modeling methods are corroborated by seismic damage surveys reporting recurrent failure patterns. The structural component discretization is a relevant step for the code-conforming seismic assessment, typically based on comparing the internal forces and drifts of each component to strength criteria and drift thresholds. Therefore, the lack of well-established approaches can significantly influence the assessment. The issue is even more evident when the structural components must be identified a priori in the modeling stage, namely for equivalent frame models. The applicability of available methods for discretization of URM walls with irregular opening layout has been already investigated in literature, but a conclusive judgment requires further studies. In this context, this paper presents an overview of the preliminary results addressing the numerical modeling of this type of walls within the framework of the DPC-ReLUIS 2022-2024 project (Subtask 10.3), funded by the Italian Department of Civil Protection. The Subtask aims to propose consensus-based recommendations for researchers and practitioners which can contribute to harmonize the use of different modeling approaches. Seven research groups are involved in the research, adopting different modeling approaches and computer codes, but similar assumptions and the same analysis method (pushover) are used. The benchmark URM structure illustrated in the paper is a two-story wall from which four configurations with increasing irregularity of opening layout were derived. The results of four modeling approached are presented. Three of them reproduce the mechanical response of masonry at the material scale by means of FE models implemented in OpenSees, DIANA and Abaqus software, while the remaining approach describes the mechanical response of masonry at the macro-element scale in 3DMacro software. Results were compared in terms of capacity curves, predicted failure mechanisms and evolution of internal forces in piers. The adoption of consistent assumptions among the different approaches led to an overall agreement of predictions at both wall and pier scales, particularly in terms of damage pattern with higher concentration of damage at the ground story. Despite that, differences on the pushover curves have been highlighted. They are mainly due to some deviations of the internal forces in squat piers deriving from a complex load flow in these elements.DPC - Dipartimento della Protezione Civile, Presidenza del Consiglio dei Ministri(LA/P/0112/2020